Hello, my name is Ricardo Rodriguez.
I'm 34 years old. I'm from Cuba though I have lived on the Canary
Islands for the past six years. I just discovered your Web site,
and it brought back many memories of the time when I lived in
Baku.

Like thousands of other Cubans,
I had the chance to get a free university education in the former
USSR. There were many foreign students in Baku at that time-mostly
from Third World countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America.

In 1987, after five years of
study, I completed a Master's degree in Persian Language and
Literature in Oriental Studies at Azerbaijan State University.
I had always loved oriental culture, especially Persian, so when
the opportunity presented itself, I didn't hesitate to go there
to study. I speak Spanish, Persian, English, Russian, Azeri and
some German and Italian. Later on, I was able to get a job related
to my profession in Cuba although so far here in Spain, I have
no such possibilities until I gain my Spanish citizenship in
a few months.

In the beginning it was quite
hard for us foreigners studying in Azerbaijan because the society
and traditions were so different. At the time, the general situation
was quite bad in Baku. But after the first year, we got used
to everything. I had a lot of Azeri friends among my classmates.
Some of them even told me that the KGB had warned them to avoid
contact with any foreigners, including me. Despite this, our
teachers loved us like their own children and invited us to their
houses during the traditional celebrations.

Soon I started learning Azeri,
and by the time I finished my studies I was able to speak and
understand it. Sometimes, when I would be walking down the street,
people mistook me for an Azeri and would ask me questions. I
would have to explain in Russian that I didn't understand what
they were saying. They used to get very upset, wondering how
an Azerbaijani didn't know his own mother language. It was clear
that they hated this.

My first son, Farid, was born
in Baku in 1983. Now he's 14. Azeri words were among the first
he spoke because he was enrolled in the local day care center.

I named my son Farid simply
because I liked that name. It's a Middle Eastern name and means
"unique" or "the best." I could have named
him an ordinary Spanish name but I never wanted him to forget
where he was born. Nowadays, he is very interested in everything
that is related to Azerbaijan and one of his biggest dreams is
to go back and visit the city where he was born.

The political situation in Azerbaijan,
in comparison to that of Cuba's, (as you can imagine), was hard
to compare because these countries were radically different at
the time. In Azerbaijan, there was a pervasive feeling among
people that they had been invaded (by Russians). It was forbidden
to say anything against the Russians or against the Soviet Union.
Corruption was widespread at every level of society.

Cuba was a completely different
situation. Castro gained enormous power and popularity with the
Cuban people though he soon became a dictator, betraying the
confidence and hopes of the people.

Thanks for the magazines. Farid
is also reading them and is fascinated with the pictures. We'd
like to keep in touch and stay informed about Azerbaijani issues.